http://www.essexrestaurants.com/ 376-1307 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html My wife and I have lived in Writtle for 4 years and have been regulars at The Blue Bridge during this time. Our feeling is what once was our favourite restaurant has now started to go down-hill. The restaurant has certainly made a name for itself, which can be contributed to gaining fame from appearing on TV and also the Beckham’s having dined there. However it seems that it has now begun to live off that name and is no longer trying as hard to impress as it used to, which unfortunately has resulted in a less fulfilling dining experience. The restaurant itself is beautifully decorated and provides a luxurious environment to dine in, however one thing we were very disappointed by was the removal of the grand piano which used to provide pleasant background music creating a wonderful atmosphere. The Grand Piano has now been replaced by another table, obviously capitalising on the restaurant’s floor space. Live music is now provided by amateur singers, who cover acts such as Amy Winehouse backed by a CD player. The last time we encountered this “live music” it was far too loud and resembled a karaoke bar as the singer clearly could not sing. A far cry from the days of the pleasant piano music. The name of the restaurant has now been changed from “The Blue Bridge Restaurant and Piano Bar” to “The Blue Bridge Bar & Restaurant” to reflect this. The food itself has always been very good although some favourites which have been on the menu for years have recently been tweaked, I guess to try and make them modern and trendy, however this has spoilt what were otherwise classic dishes. For example, the pork belly used to arrive with a beautiful layer of perfectly cooked crackling on top. Now a days the pork belly has no crackling at all, instead being accompanied by a ridiculous crackling straw which is cold and overcooked at that. It doesn’t work and spoils the dish. Other things let the meal down such as the incredibly poor coffee, which is served luke warm and bitter and usually tasting like it was made 3 hours ago. The service is normally very poor as well. For the prices the restaurant are charging, the service really should be far better. Most of the staff are teenagers who appear to have had very little training. On one occasion, when my meal turned up and it was not at all what I had ordered. When I informed the waitress of this, she started laughing and said “oh not again” before removing my meal with no hint of an apology. My correct order finally arrived once all others at my table had finished their meals. Also details like serving the ladies first when pouring wine are missed and there is very little understanding of the menu or wine list. One exception to the teenagers is a middle aged woman who is always very rude and abrupt and reminds me of a school dinner lady. She seems completely out of keeping with the image the restaurant are trying to portray and would be better suited to a motorway café. I still enjoy eating there to a point, but always leave with an ultimate feeling of disappointment, remembering how good it used to be when it was a new restaurant. Now a days The Blue Bridge has gone from being our first choice for eating out, to somewhere we go only when a friend or family member chooses it. ]]> Sun, 22 Jan 2012 13:02:54 +0000 376-1299 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html Fast, efficient in-offensive service in a relaxed, spacious, modern yet comfortable environment. Large table for two. Appropriate lighting, smart, competent service staff with good knowledge of menu and specials. Set menu was extremely good value but no sacrifice on taste, quality or presentation. Extensive wine list with a good price range. Definitely recommended, will certainly be returning. ]]> Sat, 14 Jan 2012 19:47:50 +0000 376-1252 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html We had a family party of 6 for Sunday lunch and were put at the basck of the restaurant where there is little ventilation and no window. The service was enthusiastic but poorly trained - for example our waiter dd not know wht beers they served. Twice someone from our group had to go to find a member of staff as we were left to wait too long. I was disappointed and will not go back. ]]> Wed, 12 Oct 2011 16:08:01 +0100 376-1202 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html We went for a birthday meal at the Blue Bridge and it was a lovely experience from start to finish. We were seated immeadiately by friendly and professional staff. I had the lobster to start and my partner had the cured meat platter. Both were delicious! I could not disagree more with a previous reviewer on their opinion about these dishes. For mains my partner had steak and I had lamb which were both cooked exactly as we had ordered and were so tasty. My dessert was the best I have every had! Raspberry Eton Mess, please try it if you go it is sublime. Our waitress was friendly, professional and the service attentive without being intrusive. Lovely wines added to the pleasure and our bill was in the range we expected for the standard of food and service. I would highly recommend the Blue bridge and have not been disappointed on any of my visits there. ]]> Tue, 26 Jul 2011 22:42:32 +0100 376-865 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html Great customer service, attention to detail was spot on, food was great value for money, staff were friendly and helpful.
Singer was great and created a nice ambience, I would highly recommend a meal at the bluebridge and I didnt feel out of place with my partner.
Had a cocktail at the bar after my meal which was a nice way to end the evening. ]]> Sat, 29 May 2010 09:45:15 +0100 376-830 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html Had a really enjoyable meal, tasty well cooked food and good portions, staff were attentive, I went to the Blue Bridge when it first opened and it has definately improved since the 'early days'. Only criticism would be that I couldn't finish my dessert as I was too full. ]]> Sat, 01 May 2010 14:19:45 +0100 376-828 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html Had the most fantastic meal at the bluebridge on Friday night, my first time there and I was most certainly not dissapointed.
We had champagne cocktails at the bar - to die for!!
I had a starter of Potted Salt Beef with gherkin and my Husband had Ricotta and Truffle Pasta, both were delicious and refreshingly different. Mains were Halibut and I had Duck Breast with marmalade glazed liver and an orange sauce. This is west end food in Chelmsford. The quality, presentation (simple but very clean) and service were well on a par with any good London restaurant (and we eat out a lot. For sweet we had a Chocolate Fondant with Chocolate Ice Cream to share with a glass of the best dessert wine I have ever tasted. The bill was £90 with wine which I place around average prices for this kind of restaurant, so overall good value considering we had champagne at the bar.. but what a place, I am about to book again!! ]]> Sat, 01 May 2010 10:05:26 +0100 376-639 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html Friendly professional host greeted me at the door, we had made a reservation and were offered a drink at the bar first, but as we were starving we went on to our table, I have heard good reports of this restaurant and we were not dissapointed. Lovely selection of warm bread (I asked for butter instead of the oil and vinegar)To start I had the warm goats cheese salad with beetroot, fresh, light and tasty. My main course of marinated pork absolutely melted in my mouth, one of the most amazing pieces of meat I have ever eaten, served with perfectly seasoned mashed potato and wonderfully rich gravy /sauce and some french beans. My dessert of golden syrup sponge was huge and served with hot custard was the perfect end to a perfect lunch. My wife enjoyed her lunch too, but couldnt manage a dessert!
I found the service attentive but not pushy and for the price, you wouldnt be able to eat in many places a three course lunch of that standard.
I would like to return for an evening meal there, although I didn't order any wine with my lunch, the wine list looked impressive.
Overall first impressions were really good, the place is decorated nicely, looks tastefully modern with nice high ceilings, toilets were clean and again, smartly finished. ]]> Fri, 23 Oct 2009 10:35:01 +0100 376-628 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html A few of us decided to try this restaurant for lunch. It was ok, however, there were a few niggles.

The first thing I noticed is that this place seems to work best if you book a table in advance. As we had not done this, we were deposited by the bar to order drinks whilst they made a table available for us. I would say that we were not overly welcomed; it was almost as if we were a hassle because we had not made a reservation!

As others have commented, there are definitely good areas in which to be seated in this restaurant and as we had not made a reservation, we were deposited in what others have described as the 'overflow' area. Whilst it is ok, it was not the most inspiringly decorated area and did not have a view from the window or a fireplace or any kind of focal point. When we sat down, we were the only people sitting in this area. It certainly lacked atmosphere, however, we were lucky as other people turned up who also seemed to have just dropped in rather than pre-booking and this improved the feel of our area.

The lunch menu itself is adequate, however, if you are a vegetarian there is nothing in the main course section that would be edible as all dishes were either meat or fish. I am a pescatarian so I was able to eat a fish dish, however, it was disappointing not to have a choice of a vegetarian option as I would perhaps have preferred to eat veggie.

The fellow diners in my party all commented that it was rather chilly in the restaurant, which was a real shame as there is nothing worse than eating in the cold! I think if I went again in autumn/winter, I would probably wear a vest!

The wait for our main course was fairly long as it was quite busy. I had chosen a salmon dish, which was very nice, however, there was only one vegetable served with it and this was not necessarily seasonal - the bog standard green french beans, which have probably been flown in from abroad. I prefer vegetables that are seasonal and perhaps even unusual (such as kohl rabbi). It would be nice if the vegetable was locally sourced. Both the green beans and the carbs (potatoes) were quite small portions. The salmon itself was a generous size, very nicely cooked and served in a tasty butter sauce.

One of the diners in my part asked for an additional drink when the main course was served and this did not arrive. She had to remind them, half way through the main course, and the drink was duly brought. Service was okay, but not overly attentive.

Dessert was nice. I think the creme brulee is a good option and a generous size portion as I tried some that my companion had and it was delicious. I had the chocolate brownie, which was supposed to be served with chocolate sauce and chantilly cream. The chocolate sauce turned out to be just a decorative drizzle (not enough!) and the chantilly cream was very small and did not taste any different to just regular whipped double cream. I think the brownie, which itself was rich and enjoyable, would probably have suited a ball of homeade vanilla ice-cream and a more generous helping of chocolate sauce.

Overall, I would say that the restaurant is a reasonable venue to choose for lunch. Price-wise it was ok, but in terms of value for money I would suggest slightly larger portion sizes for the acommpaniments with the main course and investing in some heating. I also think that if I were to go again, I would definitely reserve in advance in the hope of securing a better table location. Lastly, the staff could also benefit from being a little more engaged and friendly - a smile and wamer welcome would be nice. ]]> Fri, 09 Oct 2009 22:41:57 +0100 376-616 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html I visited the Blue Bridge last week to celebrate my wifes birthday - what a hugely disappointing experience it was.

Whilst the food was OK, if a liitle uninspiring, the ambience of the restaurant was awful. It felt like we were sitting in 'overflow area', which we probably were, and this had all the charm of a motorway service station.

It seemed that as I had the temerity to ask to move tables (which they refused to allow us to do) that I was marked out as a 'difficult customer'. The waiting staff were henceforth rude, unhelpful & patronising.

I had heard that the food was expensive and this certainly proved to be the case- and not good vfm.

I have the good fortune to eat out on a regular basis at good quality restauarants and can honestly say that the Blue Bridge was one of the most disappointing experiences I have had.

It is unfortuante that you cannot award 0 points on the ratings system - it really was that bad. ]]> Fri, 25 Sep 2009 16:28:33 +0100 376-435 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html My wife and I took two of our friends to the bluebridge last friday evening, we had the most memorable evening out for a long time, there was a pianist playing mellow songs and there was a buzzy atmosphere around the bar area where we had a round of champagne cocktails before going to our table.
My starter of the goats cheese souffle was delicious and light whilst flavoursome and elegantly presented, my main course of the wild boar and pork was a triumph, again was presented very well and the meat was cooked perfectly, accompanied by some zucchini fritters which I think were glazed with balsamic.
The rest of the party were equally impressed with their food, I personally couldn't manage a dessert, but the others shared a cheeseboard which had a good selection. My wife ate the chocolate fondant with pistachio ice cream, and I just wished I had left room for a pud!! Overall, service was attentive and our waiter who took the order was informative and reccomended the main course as I was in two minds what to order. We will definitely be returning in the near future. ]]> Wed, 04 Mar 2009 11:05:16 +0000 376-428 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html My fiance booked the Blue Bridge as a romantic suprise, but the attitude of the staff was awful.

When we arrived the maitre'd was moving someone who had obviously complained about their table, and was swapping their bad table with our presumably nicer one without being at all subtle about it. I could see why they had been unhappy, as the table was in a cold, small overflow area at the back, but when I told staff we weren't happy either, they didn't offer any alternative and wouldn't move us. We didn't even know there was a live singer in the main restaurant until we visited the bathroom! They then substituted our chosen wine for another without even mentioning it - when I pointed it out they were again disinterested and just shrugged it off by saying it was equivalent. Not the point! They were so off-hand and unhelpful all night I was really surprised.

The food was average, had a lovely fishcake starter, but the delicious main of lamb rump was nearly spoilt by randomly under or heavily over seasoned vegetables. My fiance's pancetta covered pheasant tasted strongly of smoky bacon and nothing else. For dessert the chocolate for the fondant had clearly been melted too fast and all just tasted burnt.

At £90 for two in a local restaurant, I expected better food and definitely better service. They may be fine on a quiet night, but I certainly would be wary of a weekend or other busy occasion, as they only seem interested in filling the place up at the expense of good customer service! ]]> Thu, 19 Feb 2009 17:40:36 +0000 376-242 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html I have to agree, we enjoyed 3 courses and a bottle of wine for just over £100 for the two of us. I cannot complain about the food at all, it was absolutely delicious but I do think quite pricey. Vegetables and potatoes all had to be paid for seperately and these portion sizes were very small (ie about 7 chunky chips for £2.95). The staff were friendly and the service very good. I think for a special occasion it's definately a very enjoyable place to go. ]]> Wed, 28 May 2008 07:07:43 +0100 376-69 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html Two visits, one in December, one in january.
Food, copious use of butter to disguise otherwise pretty bland food. Menu unadventurous. Changes to menu in new year flattens it out even more. (Any chance of game?)
Service. In December very knowledgable, polite and patient head waiter - good food descriptions, helpful with deaf and elderly guest, excellent wine recommendations, well-supervised staff. In January, slightly stressed out. Different head waiter, mostly different staff (what happened?).
Service needs improving but on basis of first visit give service 8/10. I hope they reach form again soon.
Ambience, nice decor, quiet and more lively areas, great singer. A few too many Essex Wide Boys (but then, we are in essex)´. Overall good except being able to hear the Chef (I think) shouting and swearing at the waiting staff several times! (Poor them)
Value. Wine excellent value, especially when knowledgeable staff recommend. Food so so value,a bit bland, uninspired, although desserts excellently prepared and presented.
Toilets clean, good access for elderly and disabled.
I recommend a visit because of the venue. I hope the menu gets better soon. Only big negative: two people who seem to be managers on both occasions sitting down for meal at about 9. Unfair on staff and impolite to customers. Stop it. ]]> Thu, 24 Jan 2008 17:14:13 +0000 376-60 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html Service intrusive rather than attentive.
Staff appeared far too inexperienced for the type of restaurant The Blue Bridge would like to be.
Seafood salad poor. A very few leaves under a heap of prawns and a little other fish.
Pork was good but vegetable portions minuscule.
Not one we will return to in a hurry. The first time we have not paid the full optional service charge anywhere.
Hopefully it will mature. ]]> Sun, 20 Jan 2008 15:55:57 +0000 376-31 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html Food was good but the head waiter was very arrogant and offputting. We had mains and a glass of wine for around twenty pounds which we were happy with. The menu was quite limited for vegetarians, but in their defense, when this was pointed out they did offer to make something up to order. ]]> Wed, 19 Dec 2007 18:09:57 +0000 376-13 http://www.essexrestaurants.com/chelmsford-venues/chelmsford-restaurants/the-blue-bridge-bar-restaurant-chelmsford.html New restaurant in rural Writtle. Food is good but so it should be for the price. Best time to go would be a Friday or Saturday, we went mid week and rather quiet. A place to go to for an occasion, our bill for two was over £100 which included limited drink ]]> Wed, 28 Nov 2007 18:49:22 +0000